The information provided below is not admitted to be prior art to the present invention, but is provided solely to assist the understanding of the reader.
There have long been serious problems associated with production and transportation of petroleum, oil, and other petroleum derivatives. These problems include leaks and spills of petroleum and its derivatives on land and in bodies of water. The removal of an accidental oil spill from water surface or from land areas may be difficult where it is desired to minimize potential ecological damage. Petroleum-based solvents and emulsifiers are known. However, these materials may not be bio-compatible to presently acceptable degrees.
There remains a need for bio-compatible compositions and methods to solvate and/or emulsify petroleum derivates.
Without limiting the scope of the invention a brief summary of some of the claimed embodiments of the invention is set forth below. Additional details of the summarized embodiments of the invention and/or additional embodiments of the invention may be found in the Detailed Description of the Invention below.